As the Brexit negotiations between Britain and the EU race towards the March 29 deadline, what is the state of play? The two-year negotiation period for Brexit expires on 29 March 2019 and many points still haven’t been settled. Many of the problems with the negotiations come not from the EU-UK discussions but from tensions … Continue reading “Brexit Confusion”
This B1-level article will introduce your students to the British political system. They will most probably have heard about Brexit, but will need to understand why the referendum was decided by David Cameron, how British Prime Ministers come to power and what the exit process involves. We’ve updated this resource to autumn 2018. This would … Continue reading “Brexit”
If you would like to work on Britain’s referendum on leaving Europe, the following article is a good resource. Pupils from A2+ level can understand this concise article from the BBC Newsbeat site (the news programme of their teen radio station Radio 1). At the end, there are a number of Tweets, which are more … Continue reading “Brexit Referendum Webpicks”
The exception seems to be becoming the rule in Britain, where the latest election campaign, just like the last general election and the EU referendum, has not gone the way anyone expected. Britons go to the polls today for the election Theresa May announced on 18 April, and which the Conservatives were expected to win … Continue reading “Britain Goes to the Polls”
The British government, led by Theresa May, has called a general election on 8 June, reversing the promises the Conservatives have made since the Brexit referendum vote on 23 June 2016. Although the Conservative government had called the Brexit referendum, its Prime Minister and many of its ministers campaigned leaving the E.U. When the “leave” … Continue reading “Theresa May Calls for a Snap Election”
It’s taken the best part of a year since the British electorate voted to leave the EU. On 29 March, Prime Minister Theresa May finally triggered Article 50 to officially start the leaving procedure. On 13 March, Parliament passed the EU Withdrawal Bill, which had been forced by a citizens’ challenge in the courts opposing … Continue reading “This Time Brexit Means Brexit”
Britain’s Supreme Court has ruled that Parliament must vote on the government’s plans to trigger Article 50 of Lisbon Treaty, to start the process of leaving the European Union. The Supreme Court was hearing the Government’s appeal against the October High Court ruling that the government couldn’t trigger Article 50 and start Brexit negotiations without … Continue reading “Supreme Court Rules on Brexit Launch”
It was quite a year of surprises. And definitely not a good one for opinion-poll companies and forecasters. From Brexit to Trump, refugee athletes to the rock ‘n’ roll Nobel Literature laureate, we look back at 2016. Election forecasters are probably having a long rest, or thinking about a new career about now. Last January, … Continue reading “2016: That Was the Year the Was”
Britain voted to leave the European Union in the 23 June referendum. Prime Minister Theresa May has said repeatedly that the government will trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, to start the negotiation process to leave, by the end of March. But a legal appeal in front of the Supreme Court could hold up … Continue reading “Brexit Update”
For the last couple of years, there have been nothing but surprises in British politics. The latest is the nomination of Theresa May as Conservative Party leader, and Prime Minister, after the “vote leave” victory in the Brexit referendum. May, 59, was one of the most senior members of David Cameron’s government, in charge of … Continue reading “Theresa May: A Woman at Number 10”